1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to inboard motorboats and, specifically, to an improved bilge drainage system for use within an inboard motorboat.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recreational boats frequently are powered by an inboard motor located in part below the boat""s internal flooring. In this type of vessel, the motor is generally enclosed in a covered engine compartment having a hinge at the base of a cover to provide access to the engine and related components.
A drain is provided for drainage of the engine compartment and/or of the interior of the boat generally. The boat""s interior is configured so that water in it flows to the drain by force of gravity. The drain is normally tamped with a removable, generally threaded, plug, which may be generally about an inch in diameter. The plug is manually removed when drainage is required, but must of course, be replaced prior to placing the boat in the water. Failure to replace the drain plug prior to placing the boat into water would result in flooding of the engine compartment and eventual swamping of the boat. Unfortunately, it is not an unheard of occurrence that the operator forgets to replace the plug into the drain hole prior to launching the boat, and suffers the above undesirable consequences. In part, this is because the described type of drain is located near or more often beneath a portion of the engine within the enclosed engine compartment, making the open/closed status of the drain unapparent and, in either event, hidden from view by the engine compartment and cover. Even when the operator remembers to insert the plug, the location of the plug under the engine makes access an inconvenient and sometimes messy job, and possibly dangerous, such as when the engine is hot or actually running.
Equally undesirable is forgetting to remove the drain plug when, for example, the boat is in unprotected storage where it could be flooded by a rain shower. Damage to the boat""s electronics, motor or interior could result from allowing water to accumulate inside the boat undrained. Finally, the removable plug, being a separate component, may be lost or misplaced, meaning that the boat cannot be operated until a replacement has been obtained.
Needed, therefore, is an improved design for a boat drainage system that makes opening and closing the drain more convenient and more easily visualized.
The present invention is directed to an improved inboard motorboat boat bilge drainage system having a drain closure that is operable from a position outside of the engine compartment of the motorboat. Preferably, a handle for operating the drainage system is located to be accessible outside of and adjacent the covered portion of the motor compartment and is accessible with the engine compartment cover closed.
In a further improvement, the screw-in and screw-out drain plug of the prior art is replaced by a drain closure valve that preferably goes from a fully open position to a fully closed position in approximately one quarter to one-half of a turn of the handle, and still further the handle is able to function as a visual indicator of the drain status. The shaft of the handle may at an angle that is not perpendicular to the horizontal plane of the floor of the boat such that the drain closure status is made more conspicuous by the protrusion of at least a portion of the handle above the floor when the drain is open, and the handle turned up.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the bilge drain is located external to the engine compartment covered by an engine compartment access cover and adjacent thereto and has a drain closure assembly associated with the drain. The drain closure may include a valve assembly operable by a handle. The outlet of the bilge drain through the hull of the boat is no longer within the engine compartment proper, but is rather beneath the floor area of the boat, adjacent the engine compartment, and in communication with the engine compartment. The drain closure, be it a threaded plug or a valve, is conveniently accessible without the need to enter and go through the engine compartment access cover. The best place for the bilge drain opening is near the lowest point along the hull to permit drainage by gravity. The bilge drain opening may also be used for draining motor oil, such as through a hose fed through the drain, to the outside of the boat, which is most convenient if the drain is near the motor.
The bilge drain in this embodiment of the present invention, is located in an area where it does not interfere with craft operations, and, preferably, in a well formed through the floor of the boat above the hull and with potential access out the hull to the outside of the boat below the hull. Because the engine compartment still must be drained, a channel to the bilge drain (compartment extension) is provided.
In further embodiments of the present invention, the bilge drain remains in its conventional location within the engine compartment and a drain closure assembly that is operable from a position external to the engine compartment is used to open and close the bilge drain. In a preferred embodiment, the bilge drain assembly includes a valve that can be operated to allow or prevent drainage through the bilge drain, but that is not removed in ordinary operation. The valve itself can be in a housing, and a valve stem handle is both accessible and visible without opening the engine compartment cover. To further increase visibility, the valve stem may be at an angle that is not perpendicular relative to the horizontal plane of the floor of the boat so that at least a portion of the handle protrudes above the boat floor, and is thus highly visible when the valve is in the open position.
In yet further embodiments of the present invention, a rotational drive of the valve at an angle is utilized to open and close the valve. Preferred embodiments of the rotational drive include an articulated coupling or a flexible connector interconnecting the handle and valve.
In a further embodiment, operation of the drain closure assembly also opens and closes an electrical circuit that can be used to activate an alarm or indicator light to signal the open or closed condition of the drain closure, or even to prevent the ignition circuit from being closed, without performing some override operation.
An object of the invention is to provide a drain system that is both simple and convenient to use.
Another object of the invention is to provide a boat drainage system that is operable without accessing the engine compartment.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide boat bilge drainage that eliminates the necessity of removing the bilge plug that could become lost.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide an improved drainage system that can be operated in a manner that is safer, simpler, and cleaner when compared to conventional systems.
A further object of the invention is to provide an improved drainage system that employs a visual indication of the status of the boat""s drainage aperture.
A still further object of the invention is to provide an alarm to alert a vessel operator if a drain is not properly closed.